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Alberto Contador won''t take part in the Tour of the Basque Country, the Tour de France champion announced on Tuesday.

Contador said that he had changed his plans to compete at the Criterium International in Corsica, March 27-28, instead of events in Catalonia and the Basque Country.

Seven-times Tour champion Lance Armstrong also said earlier this year that he would take part in Corsica, set to become the only race where the two rivals will meet before the Tour.

Following the March 27-28 Criterium, Contador will also take part in the Tour of Castilla y Leon, the Fleche Wallonne and Liege-Bastogne-Liege classics next month.

"The Criterium is a race that suits my characteristics very well and I look forward to it because it is such a prestigious race," Contador said in a statement.

Contador and Armstrong were bitter teammates at Astana last season. Armstrong finished third in last year''s Tour, his first since winning seven straight from 1999 to 2005. He left Astana and now races for Team RadioShack.